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69 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,N ovem ber 28,2019 insidehalton.com 1276 Cornwall Road, Unit C, Oakville Ontario, L6J 7W5 T: 905-845-0767 • F: 905-845-5552 • www.haxelllaw.com • lawyers@haxelllaw.com Personal Professional Service at Competitive Rates Buying? Selling? Re Call us for a quote at 905-845-0767 ext. 223Jameson Glas GOLDGOGOGOGOGOGOGOGOLDLDGOLDLDLDLDLDLD 905-845-0767 ext. 223Jameson Glas BADBOY.CA! $98 #123730 - 1 PER HOUSEHOLD BY 3HDMI - 60HZ 1ST 100 CHAINW IDE! 32 " HD SMART $138 AFTER 8AM 6-8 AM NOV.29 STARTS TOMORROW! FRI NOV. 29TH 6AM! Oakville's own Leslie Ashworth, 22, is a violinist, composer and currently a master's music stu- dent at the Shepherd's School of Music at Rice University in Hous- ton, Texas. What is your favou- rite colour? Pink What's your favou- rite smell? Baking cupcakes What is your least fa- vourite word? - I don't use bad words, so let's say all the swear words. Who's your hero? - Both of my parents. They are such amazing role models as hardworking people. They've in- spired me to work hard and not have regrets. They've always en- couraged us, myself and my sib- lings, to think outside the box and make our own opportunities. Who is your favourite fictional character? Why? I really loved Nancy Drew when I was little, I read all the books. I love her determination to solve mysteries. Back in the day, it wasn't normal for women to be the one to solve the mysteries but she was very strong and deter- mined as a young female detec- tive. What inspired you at the age of four to start playing the vio- lin? I didn't decide. My parents chose the violin for me because I was very small. They had noticed that I would sing around the house a lot and I was in tune. So they de- cided to try me on the violin and I clicked with it, I loved the violin from the very beginning. They were very patient because it doesn't necessarily have the best sound in the beginning. What has kept you playing? I love the violin. It's been a part of me since I can remember. I love practising and working toward a goal and the rewarding feeling that comes with attaining those goals. I love being able to move people with my music, and bring joy to them through performing. What do you love about Oakville? I love the supportive community. I love how everyone I've met in Oakville is supportive and kind and very friendly. It's always spe- cial to perform for the Oakville community, I love seeing the fa- miliar faces. It's neat because they've watched me grow up so I feel like I have a special connec- tion with them. What is Suite Melody Care? It's a program that I started back in 2012 that encourages youth to give back to their community by performing in their local hospi- tals, retirement homes and long- term care facilities. We bring joy through music to audiences that can't go out to concerts. They're interactive performances so we engage the audiences and they each have a theme. The high school students earn their volun- teer hours in that way and we give over 100 performances annually. What inspired you to start Suite Melody Care? From performing in the Oakville Hospital in the rehab ward. See- ing how much happiness the mu- sic was bringing the patients, in- spired me to start the program so other youth could do the same. You recently earned the Na- tional Gold Medal for the Roy- al Conservatory of Music (RCM) ARCT performance ex- ams (highest mark in the coun- try) on the on the viola. How did you feel when you found out? I was ecstatic to receive the news! I had worked very hard leading up to the ARCT (associate diplo- ma) viola exam and focused all of my energies on the beautiful rep- ertoire of pieces I chose to per- form in the exam. Having started studying at The Royal Conserva- tory at the age of 10 (when I en- tered the Phil & Eli Taylor Perfor- mance Academy for Young Art- ists), it has played an integral part of my studies and develop- ment as a musician. To receive the National Gold Medal for Viola was such a wonderful conclusion (I graduated with my bachelor of music from The Glenn Gould School at the RCM in May 2019) to my musical education at this place that really feels like a sec- ond home to me. Why is your violin important to you? My violin and I have a very spe- cial friendship. You can say so much more with sound than one can say with words alone and it doesn't matter what language you speak when you listen to mu- sic ... it truly can connect people from so many different cultures and experiences. My particular violin is also very special as it is over 300 years old. It was made in 1696 by an Italian maker called Albani. It is on loan to me from a private benefactor. I feel very for- tunate to play on such a precious instrument - it has such a depth of possibilities. It inspires me every- day to search for new colours in my sound and I hope that I am al- so making it happy by always searching for its full potential! COMMUNITY Thinking Outside the Box with Leslie Ashworth an Oakville musician and the founder of Suite Melody Care. Nikki Wesley/Torstar THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX: OAKVILLE VIOLINIST LESLIE ASHWORTH NIKKI WESLEY nwesley@metroland.com